Persona 4: There Is A Therapist
by noi'mafraidnot
Summary: A therapist moves in to Inaba. Other stuff happens. How exciting.
1. Chapter 1

Persona 4: Psychology

Click-click-thunk. Click-click-thunk. The endless repetition of the train's gears slowly progressing towards it's destination. I watch as the valleys pass by, losing myself in their cacophony of colors. I turn towards the rest of the train's occupants, the previously dull roar now getting even louder as we get nearer to our destination. I sigh, smiling a bit. I've always enjoyed loud places, it helps me think for some odd reason. I decide to look around at the passengers one by one, trying to judge them at a glance. One of them, a young man, seems to be grandstanding, obviously trying to impress the various girls he has around him. He looks like he's doing a good job, but looking at his face closely, I can see flashes of uncertainty and a lack of confidence in his every action. He seems to succeed in everything he does, but doesn't seem to have any faith in himself. A fairly common boy, honestly. He'll grow out of it eventually. Well, either that or he'll have to see me… Eh, I'll just take it as it comes.

I continue to let my eyes wander, looking at the various crowds of kids, aged anywhere from thirteen to eighteen, chuckling occasionally. Eventually, I spot a solitary young man with gray hair leafing through a magazine. Usually, kids like that are at least somewhat lonely, and shoot glances at groups of people, but this young man didn't seem interested in anything going on. Looking up, I see that he's got a lot of luggage. Must be heading towards a city or something, he doesn't seem to be the country type. I go through my head, trying to think of any cities on the route, but after a while I realize that we just passed the last city, and the only stop left is for Inaba. Hmm, maybe going to see some family or something? …Still seems like an awful lot of baggage though. I turn away, yawning as I look out at the valleys again. Peering towards the front, I notice a building, likely the Amagi Inn, slowly rise over the horizon. I stretch, getting ready to get all my things together.

Suddenly, the rhythm of the train speeds up. I frown, thinking. This really shouldn't be happening, the train never gets above the speed it was at before, unless there's some sort of… Oh crap. I tense up, not fully convinced that there's a problem yet, but still fully ready to move at the slightest jolt. The train bolts, and starts shaking as the other people in the train begin to realize that there's a problem. I jump up, not sure what to do. I look around, trying to spot a safe way out as the others in the train are beginning to shout even more than before. I begin to panic, starting to shout with the rest of them, my fear getting the best of me, as suddenly;

"Everyone, settle down! Now!" The gray haired boy shouts, somehow managing to get himself heard over the chorus of fear. "Right then! There's no time to lose! Everyone sit back in your seats, and put your feet against the back of the next seat! Those in front, just do it against the wall! Move!"

Everyone listens to the boy, him being the sole sane one in the entire train as he follows his own advice. I quickly do as he says, wondering for a moment why I'm obeying him so readily. I decide to look that up if I end up not surviving. Speaking of which, there's a time and place for this! The train speeds up, faster and faster, and suddenly a gut-wrenching rending tear is heard as the train hurtles off the tracks. Our momentum carries us further and further, as the screams within the train rise to fever pitch. I look at the young man, who looks completely calm about the situation. I turn away quickly, looking out the window as I try to get an idea of how fast we're going. I quickly wish I didn't. A second later, the car in front of us is crushed against a hill, as dozens of screams are suddenly cut off.

"Oh god! Oh god!" One of the girls screams, "Takeshi! _TAKESHI!_"

The train comes to a rattling halt, it's momentum halted by the hill. However, the screaming doesn't stop as everyone rushes around, trying to escape. I leap out of my seat, initially intending to follow them as I catch myself.

"No, I can't just… leave. I have to try and help." I mutter to myself, cursing my inability to simply flee. I look around, looking for any injured as all of the healthy ones try to escape. I hear a wail as a woman is trampled in the aisle. I leap out into the center, pushing against the crowd as I try to get to her. However, as I struggle against the fleeing masses, her cries get smaller and smaller, and by the time I reach her, she's gone completely silent. I swear to myself, barely able to keep my position in the tide, and jump off into the seat next to me. The wave of people begins to subside, and I jump off of my seat, still looking around. I see the gray haired boy from before, apparently having the same idea as me, helping a little girl who got trapped in her seat. Apparently her parents just ran off… I spit despite myself, despising the very idea of parents that would do that. I continue pass the boy, offering a nod as I move into the back car. I spot an elderly woman with her leg trapped in a part of the car that was twisted. Her leg was completely caught in there, and the blood was purely visible. Suppressing my desire to gag, I moved over to her.

"Ma'am, are you alright?" I ask, trying to keep my voice as steady as possible. She is unable to reply with anything but a gasp. "Ma'am, concentrate on my voice!" I shout, grabbing her face slightly and turning it towards mine.

"You'll be just fine, okay? Just hold out for the ambulance to get here." I pull out my cellphone, still talking to her as I dial up the police. Apparently, they had already been notified so I hung up, still talking to the elderly woman, trying to get her to remain conscious. Eventually, I hear the sound of stomping feet as policemen enter the aisle. They motion for me to back away as they survey the situation.

"Oh, hell… This isn't good! Her leg's trapped!" One of the policemen shouts to the others. I decide to get out of the way, there's nothing I can do that would make the situation any better than I already have. Thankfully, those were the only three injured outside of the front car… I get a sudden flash of how it must have felt to be in there, your last moments being those of utter, gut-wrenching terror… I shake my head, snapping myself out of it as I clamber out of the car. I see the gray haired boy once again, talking to one of the officers, probably giving a witnesses description. For all the good that'll do, it was a goddamn train accident. I look myself over, making sure I'm uninjured, before simply leaving. It's not that far of a walk, and I'd rather not be associated with something like this on my first day in Inaba.

As I walk towards the town, I try to keep my mind from flashing back, deciding that I was lucky to not be injured and that I shouldn't over think it. Things happen, and I couldn't have done anything else… I sigh, rubbing my temple as I walk. Suddenly, the boy from before crosses my path, stopping as he looks at me. Why do I keep seeing him? Hell.

"…" He simply stares at me , still standing in my path. …Creepy.

"Yeah, what?" I say, quite off guard due to how creepy this kid was. It's bad enough that he's doing this, but the fact that I can't read him… that's the worst bit.

"You helped out on the train, didn't you?" He asks, squinting at me. It feels more as though he's interrogating me than a conversation. Pretty offputting, really.

"What of it?" I decided to go for the too cool to care approach, mostly intending on just getting to the town as quickly as possible. It's humid as hell out here.

"I just wanted to say thanks. Didn't see anyone else getting their ass in gear and helping out." He extends his hand towards me. "Nice to meet you…?"

I take his hand, sighing a bit. "Nanami Tsukihiro." I look at the luggage in his hand, suddenly realizing something. "Ah, hell!" I shout, remembering that I completely forgot my briefcase. Turning around, I realize I've already walked about two miles, and I sigh. "Well, that's just…" I realize there's still that kid behind me. "…terrible."

"Forget something?" The boy says, grinning as he pulls out my briefcase. Apparently he'd carried it all this way, along with his normal luggage… Wait a second.

"Er… thanks, but now that I think about it, how the hell did you overtake me while carrying all that?" I frown, probably looking rather confused. He just grins, walking away as he waves at me over his shoulder.

"I'm off! See you later." He shouts, taking off at a run. Hell of a runner, gotta say. I could totally run like that if I wanted to… I look at myself. I'm bulky, but not exactly fast. I sigh, then chuckle to myself a bit. "I could totally run if I… well, ran."

I pick up my briefcase, looking for all the world like I just came out of a business meeting, not a train crash. I look over my suit, feeling pretty professional. I sigh again, continuing on my trek towards Inaba. Just a few more miles to go, might as well take it slow. Least it's nice outside this evening. …Wait, evening? I quicken my pace, realizing I don't have much time if I plan on settling in.

After about an hour, I finally finish the mini-journey, panting as I come in to Inaba. I look around, getting my bearings as I begin to move towards my office/home. Thankfully, I finished all of the preparations before I arrived officially, managing to scrape the last of my savings together to get myself a small building and a nice little plaque. Oh, and the bed and fridge and whatnot. Even had the key in my pocket, so I was all set. As I trudged up the street, looking a fair bit less professional than before with some nice little sweat stains under my armpits, I eventually made it up to the front door of my office, grinning as I put the key into the lock, twisting it as the door opened.

It was a fairly squat little building, only a bit wider than the story tall it was, barely large enough to hold both an office and a bedroom in the back. I drop the briefcase on the ground, stretching as I enter the house office thing. I look around, noting how it looks fairly bare, deciding to get a couch the next time I come into some money. Deciding to just turn in for the night, I make a note to myself to get the office in order tomorrow. Apparently the appointments are coming in right away. Some might say that it's impulsive and silly to have appointments scheduled the day after you arrive, but I'm twenty-two. It's my time to -be- impulsive, dammit!

I stroll into my bedroom after locking the door behind me, smiling as I see the bed that looks incredibly comfortable. Just so… comfortable…

=Super Special Line Break=

BRRRRING! BRRRRING! The alarm rings, pretty much the most annoying sound in the damn world. I roll over, wondering when I even got around to plugging it in. Slamming the alarm until it stops making the noise, I get up out of bed, yawning as I look out the window. After admiring the shining sunrise, it's coffee time. I walk over to the corner of my room that serves as the kitchen, yawning again as I start up the pot. I dig around in the cupboards, and eventually find some cereal. Ah, cereal. Best, easiest, quickest breakfast ever. Doesn't really go great with coffee, but by the time I realize this I'm already pouring the milk into the bowl. Eh, who cares. I walk over to my table-

…Of course I would forget to get a table. Hell. I sigh, grabbing the end table and putting it next to my bed, sitting on the mattress as I eat. Not exactly the most prestigious way to eat, but I think I can live with it for a while. Right then, so I'm going to need a couch and a table. I look around the room, and realize that there's not exactly any extra room to put a table. …A small one, I suppose. I continue mindlessly eating my cereal, and finish just as the coffee pot rings it's finishing bell. Oh goodie, time to wake up. I put the bowl into the small sink, making my way towards the coffee pot. I pull out the coffee jug thing, and then I realize I forgot the damn mug. God, I hate mornings.

After my daily routine of morning silliness, I walk out into the lobby, dressed in my nicest suit, wearing my best cologne, and all in all looking very, very pretty. I stretch a bit, getting the suit nice and loose, and then start placing my diploma and plaque on the wall. Tsukihiro Nanami, Masters in Psychology. I love having ego boosts. Turning away from my accomplishment, I look over the appointment list again.

"Hmm… Looks like Seta Souji, Yukiko Amagi, and Mitsuo Kubo, eh?" I think out loud, rubbing my chin.

Right. Forgot to shave, too. I put down the list on an endtable, sighing as I trudge back into the room. After coming out again, I'm finally ready to face the day. Hmm… I guess I have a little bit of time before the appointments start. I've still got a few yen left over, I guess I'll go buy some magazines or something so that people aren't _too_ bored when they walk in. I stride out the door, locking it up behind me, and then walk down the street, whistling. It's a great day, and the town is quiet enough that I have the streets mostly to myself, able to enjoy the sun's slow rise over the valleys. This is so much better than the city it's ridiculous. Only a couple passing cars disrupt my walk, but that doesn't even put a dent in my mood. This is going to be a great place to live.

Eventually, I begin to see students trickle out onto the street, and soon enough the streets are almost filled. I sigh, remembering the days when I went to school. Wasn't really well known, wasn't incredibly smart in most subjects, except for psychology. When it comes to analytical psychology, I outclassed every single person. Managed to get my Master in four years. I don't really know what it is, but for some reason I can just read lots of people like books. When I actually have to talk to them on a personal level, I can barely handle myself, but if I'm just watching them, I can almost always determine their behaviors, likes and dislikes, all that. It's always baffled me. However, I was able to keep a few close friends during school, although we drifted apart afterwards. Still kept school from being a total hell though, so I'm certainly grateful for that.

Snapping out of my trance, I realize I wandered just outside the Junes store. The chain's been getting remarkably popular lately, springing to life in the last five years. Well, might as well shop here, right? I stroll on into the store, amazed that a small town like this has such a huge supermarket. That has to be ticking a few people off, but it's not really my pro- Oh, right, it is. Hmmm, maybe I just have trouble with empathy, now that I think about it… It would indeed be a shame if the small-town atmosphere was lost, I mean I just left the damn city to get away from all that… Oh well, it hopefully won't expand beyond this. I'm amazed even Junes was stationed here, this is a very small town. Right, rambling internally again, I gotta work on that.

I find myself in the furniture section, and I look at the different couches. I only have about 200,000 yen for expenses, thanks to some good saving habits from my childhood. My parents always ingrained that in to me, never spend more than you need, because you'll need it later and all that. They probably put it more succinctly, but I've always had a love for overcomplicating things. I eventually find a pretty nice couch for only 20,000 yen, a steal. I immediately call a Junes salesperson over, asking how I can get it in my office by the end of the hour. She was pretty quick about it, maybe detected the urgency, and managed to get it on a truck, along with a small table for another 10,000 yen. I thanked her and the driver, and walked back home. The driver asked me if I wanted to ride along, but I just don't feel comfortable sitting in another person's car. Just feels odd. By the time I got home, the duo of boxes were outside, and just had to get carried in. Thankfully I started doing a bit of weight training before I left high school, so I was more than capable of getting them both into the house pretty quickly. I put the couch in a corner, deciding I'll go for a slightly less "waiting roomy" look. As for the table, I just threw it into my bedroom before walking into my office.

The office was fairly small, but was the largest by far of all the other choices I had. One of the other ones was literally a small cupboard, and the house portion wasn't much larger, but I digress. It was a decent sized room, with my pride and joy mahogany wood desk in the middle, and two comfortable seats on opposite sides of it. There were two windows on my side, letting in a good bit of light. Made it a bit more imposing, which was somewhat the atmosphere I wanted to have. I had the obligatory shelf filled with books dominating the right side of the room, and the useful things such as notes and such laid out neatly on my desk. There was a grandfather clock in the middle of the left side of the room, along with some fairly nice paintings. The floor was carpeted with brown, a fairly nice "office" color. Certainly better than grey, in any case.

I sigh contentedly, sinking into my seat as I look over the chart again. It's about three in the afternoon, and apparently Seta should be showing up fairly soon. I think for a second before deciding to get some tea ready. Might as well welcome him in, and besides, it might get me a good reputation if I greet all my guests with some tea. I start it up, and by the time it finishes, I hear the chime on top of the door sound, announcing Seta's arrival. I straighten the tie on my suit a bit before walking out with the tea, smiling at hi-

Woah, hold on a second. Him? The grey haired boy from earlier stands in the doorway, looking almost as surprised as me. I recover quickly, stating calmly;

"Ah, you must be Seta then, please, go ahead and have a seat." I nod towards the office door, and follow him as he walks in. I place one of the tea cups on his side of the desk before sinking into my own seat, sipping at the cup. I try to let my patients make the first move, always makes it more interesting in the end.

On the downside, this also leads to increasingly awkward silences. We spent a good five minutes staring at each other imposingly while sipping our tea. Eventually, I realized that we weren't going to get anywhere like this. I placed the tea on the desk, leaning back into my seat while recalling Seta's file.

"So then, Seta. Have you been acclimating well?" I ask, smiling slightly.

"Yes, I suppose. It's been slightly difficult, but I'm adjusting. Now, how have you been acclimating yourself, Nanami-san?" He asks, smiling the same noncommittal smile I am. Damn, he's good. Managing to put me on edge too, although I suppose that's only polite. Hmmm…

"Rather good! It's nice to be in a small, quiet town." I reply. "But I'm wondering, how did you know I was new here as well?" I quirk an eyebrow at Seta, keeping my face blank. He continues smiling, looking directly into my eyes. God, this kid is somehow more imposing than any patient I've ever met.

"Oh, you know, new people in town always attract gossip… especially when they purchase a building. Not to mention, Inaba didn't exactly have a psychologist before." He states matter-of-factly, grinning once again. I don't quite know what to make of him. That still doesn't really make sense, though. If I'm correct, he's been in town only as long as I have, and I doubt anyone at school would be talking about the brand new psychologist versus the new kid in town.

"Hmm, I suppose word travels fast! It must be the same for you, eh? The new city boy in town!" I reply, chuckling a bit. Might as well surprise him as well, if he's going to do that to me.

"Heh, you could say that alright. I managed to get yelled at straight away by my teacher. Said something about how I was a pimp or a gangster or something, and that it isn't the same out here in the country. I wasn't really paying attention until he called me a loser." He sighs, rubbing his temple. "At that point, I got a little ticked, so I called him out in front of the entire class."

I couldn't stop a chuckle, imagining the scene. "Must have been quite the reaction you got there, eh? Was it worth it?" I smile, starting to analyze him a bit. Probably the "cool guy" sort of type, always trying to stay above everyone else. Or maybe not, bit too early to tell.

He grinned before replying. "Totally. Not many better ways to become popular straight away than putting an asshole teacher in check, and if Morooka doesn't like me, I think I can live with that. I'm pretty sure him not liking me puts myself in higher esteem with the other teachers, anyway."

…Woah. Nevermind, he's definitely the manipulator type. Either that, or he just knows how to work situations to his advantage. Either way, he's definitely a lot smarter than I initially gave him credit for. And judging by his actions yesterday, he's also a pretty good guy. Speaking of which…

"So, about that train… I noticed you were trying to help that girl. A pretty chivalrous act, wouldn't you say?" Might as well get a sense of his ego, but it seemed to have a slightly different effect than I imagined. Usually when asked a question like that, people will either be humble, accepting, or arrogant. However, I noticed him frown a bit before responding.

"Well, I… I did the best I could, given the circumstances, but so many other people died. I wish I could've saved them, somehow." He frowns again, wincing as he relives the memory.

Hmm… Possibly a bit depressed, and I can't blame him. I feel the same way, but I've been trying to block it out. Hmph, hell of a psychologist if I try to repress things. I'll have to think about it later, now isn't the time.

"I see. I feel the same way, actually." He looks up suddenly, surprised. "Yes… I managed to help an old woman in the back who got trapped, but I was almost right next to the top car… Suddenly hearing their screams cut off, and the sounds…" I shudder. Hell, I guess it is the time.

"O-oh. Yeah, it was terrible." He looks a bit shaken up, more than before. More like he just got caught off guard than actual sadness… Wait a second. Was he trying to manipulate me? That cheeky little bastard! I barely suppressed a chuckle. My, this will definitely be one interesting patient. I'll have to keep an eye on him. Taking a look at the clock, it seems we only have a few minutes left. I take the tea again, sipping before starting to speak once more.

"Well, we can talk about that next time, if you choose to come. But more importantly, have you made any friends, enemies, all that?" I ask, sipping my tea once more.

"Well, I met a couple of people, but I haven't really gotten friendly yet. It's only the first day, after all, and people seem more interested in the gimmick of a city boy than me as a person, so far. It's… pretty irritating, actually." He sighs, rubbing his temple again. Finally, I find someone else who does that.

I grin. "Well, that's the curse of the new kid, eh? I'm sure they'll grow out of it shortly, especially if you kick their asses in the academics field. Well, either that or they'll think you're trying to make them feel stupid, which wouldn't be very good. Hmm…" I trail off, before realizing that I'm rambling -outside- my head. That's generally not good. "Er, in any case, I hope you have good luck in Inaba, I think you have a bright future ahead of you if you just keep at it. Will you be coming again, or do you think you're fine?"

A strange look passes his face, of confusion mixed with some anxiety before he responds. "Yeah, I think I'll be coming again. Nice to meet you, Nanami-san." He gets up, extending his hand towards me again. I take his hand, trying to think of why he made such an expression, frowning a bit myself. "Nanami-san, you shouldn't frown like that. I hear it causes wrinkles." He lets go of my hand, leaving the room without another word. Wrinkles? Is he saying I'm old? That little twerp…

=Another Super Special Line Break=

I take a glance at my appointment list again. Next up: Yukiko Amagi! Hmm, wait, Amagi inn.. Oh, this should be interesting! Daughter of the proprietor of the Amagi Inn, obviously. Apparently her parents scheduled the appointment, saying that she was becoming withdrawn for some reason. Great, looks like I get an enigma for my second case. Eh, probably just puberty and her parents don't like it. Definitely wouldn't be the first time. I get up, making some more tea, but this time I'm in my seat with the tea already placed when she walks in. I call her in, and she sits down.

"Help yourself to the tea, it's for first time guests." I nod, smiling.

"Ah, uh, thank you, sir." She mumbles, obviously not all that comfortable with the situation, although she does take a sip.

"Please, call me Nanami." Might as well get off this title business. It's always infuriated me anyway. All these sirs, sans, kuns, chans, it's all just so damned confusing.

"R-right, Nanami-san." Oh. Great.

"Right then, Amagi! Now, from the file I have here, your parents sent you here because you became, ah, "withdrawn to them". Now then, what is the cause of this, do you think?" Oh, well, that wasn't very tactful, but I think I can live with it.

"Um, well… I don't know. I didn't think I was being rude to them…" She trails off, looking at her feet. Well, let's look at all the ways that this is suspicious. Exhibit A! She didn't make eye contact. Exhibit B, I didn't say rude, I said withdrawn. Exhibit C, she's being very, very timid, or perhaps that was just how she was raised. Not sure if that's suspicious or not, I just wanted an Exhibit C.

"Amagi-kun," Eh, screw it. If it makes her comfortable, why not. "I didn't say that you were being rude, just somewhat withdrawn. Are there other issues affecting your relations?" I ask, furrowing my brows. I love doing that. Makes me look all mysteri- Right, back on topic.

"N-no." She replies quickly. Wow, it's almost as though she's trying to be an open bo- Oh, maybe she is.

"Now Amagi-kun, you can tell me the truth. I swear upon my soul that I won't reveal any of this to anyone else. Everything said in this office remains -strictly- between us. Okay?" I smile at the end, hoping to let her guard down.

"Um… okay then…" She trails off. Oh, right, maybe swearing on my soul was a bit extreme. Bah, who cares. Moving on!

"Well, let me ask again. Is there anything bothering you about your family?" The thing is, I'm not actually asking the same thing at all. I think I'm just being strange for the sake of it now. Oh well, it's fun, and it seems to be working a bit.

"Um, well, I have been having a few problems… You see, my parents want me to take over the Inn when I grow up…" She trails off, frowning a bit. Ah, so -that's- it! Makes sense. The traditional "I don't want to do this but my parents want me to oh my god" thing. …Usually, though, the subject tries to rebel at every opportunity. She doesn't quite seem the type, somehow.

"Ah. And you're not totally fine with that, I take it?" I ask, quirking an eyebrow.

"Well, it's not that I'm not fine with it, it's just…" She trails off again. Must not be very confident in herself, I suppose. Pretty damn hard just to get a straight answer, too. I nod, noticing that the time is almost up.

"Well, all I can give you advice for at this point is to simply follow what you want to do. It's your time in life to do what you like, don't waste it stressing about what comes after. Go out, live your life, and when the time comes, decide what you want to do. Simple as that." She stares blankly at me, obviously not buying it. Oh well, it was worth a try. Maybe she's one of those that think they're more mature than the other kids, I don't really know. "In any case, I'm afraid our time is up. Will you be returning?" I ask.

"Well, maybe. I don't know, I'll ask my parents. E-er, no offense or anything, Nanami-san!" She stutters, obviously trying to hide her dislike. Ouch. Well, can't really expect her to be happy with this situation, I suppose, but it still kinda hurts the pride.

I smile back at her. "None taken, I understand how it must be, being forced to come to a psychologist, especially when he's a city man. Well, you can come if you like, or if your parents force you to again. My door is always open. Well, unless I'm sleeping. Or shopping. Actually, let's just say whenever I'm not at home." Dammit, rambling again! Thankfully, I hear the door chime sound. "Ah, Amagi-kun, I'm afraid that my next appointment has arrived." I stand up, extending my hand, but she simply bows and shuffles out the door before I can say anything. Man, am I really that bad?

I sigh, realizing I don't have tea for this next one. I put the cups away in one of my drawers. If he doesn't know there was supposed to be tea, he won't miss it now will he? Now, I'll just read over his file for a few seconds… Woah. This is insane. As I look over the files, it seems that mister Kubo here has had quite the destructive life. Sedentary lifestyle, parents never made him go outside, apparently lots of neglect… he's been through his fair share of psychologists too. Apparently he has an unhealthy addiction to video games, has a huge amount of trouble maintaining social relationships… Hell, this is going to take a lot of work. I'm not going to be playing around with this one, that's for sure.

"Kubo-kun, you can come in now." I call through the door, preparing myself mentally. As he opens the door, I get a good look at him. …Fishface. Freaky. No, can't let myself think like that, he'll pick up on it subconsciously most likely, and then we'll get absolutely nowhere. I keep my face a steady blank, motioning for him to take a seat.

"So, you're the new one, eh?" He asks in a surly tone, sitting down in the chair as he smirks. Oh, wonderful, he's had experience with this. I'll have to make sure not to fall for his tricks.

"Yeah, I suppose so. I see you've been through your own fair share of psychologists, eh?" I ask, grinning.

"Don't try that friendly crap with me. You're just trying to catch me off guard so you can pry in deeper, loser." …Woah. Yeah, he's definitely had experience with this. Well, might as well cut the bullshit, he won't fall for the tricks if he knows them all.

"Yeah, I definitely was. However, I can see that little tactic won't work. I've been looking over your file, Mitsuo. You've had a hell of a life." I decided to drop the title thing, maybe catch him off guard a bit my own way. Old habits die hard.

"Hell of a life, eh? Good joke. Tch. How about I just leave, you're not getting anywhere." I am losing control of the situation, not good. Time to get a bit harsh. As he begins to rise from his seat, I say utterly calmly:

"Sit the hell down, Kubo." I glare at him, as he glares right back. He acquiesces, grinning a bit.

"You have a bit more backbone than the others. Interesting." Good, it worked.

"I'm flattered, Kubo. Now then, let's get right to business, since you obviously aren't having this manipulation shit. Why are you so broken?" I stare at him, trying to read his face.

"W-what?" Oh yeah, totally took him off guard. His eyes are widening, hell, he's almost gaping.

"You heard me. I've looked through your file, and you seem broken in so many ways it's almost funny. You have no friends, all you do is play videogames, and then you get all elitist because you're good at the video games, and everyone else is bad at them. But I have a theory. -You're- jealous of -them-, aren't you? Jealous because they got the good life, because they have good parents, because they have people to help them. But you… you have nobody. I've been there." I rant, this time apparently having a good effect.

"…" He says nothing, digesting everything I've said. I guess I was the first one to just put it all on the table. I decide to continue leading the conversation.

"Now Kubo, I am not trying to make you feel small here. And now I have only one question for you: How are we going to fix this?" I ask him, staring directly into his eyes. The alarm rings, I guess I got too into the ranting. "Alright Kubo, it's time to go. I expect to see you back here next week, got it?" He nods slowly, leaving the room without speaking. I hope I didn't go too overboard. …I probably did, but hopefully that's what he needed. Sure as hell what I had to have, when I was like him. Well, he's out the door, and it's five thirty now, so it looks like I have a bit of time to kill… let's go see what the local bar is like.

Et voila. First chapter done. Longest one I've written by far. Apparently actually taking breaks in the middle of it instead of forcing yourself through it for two hours makes it a lot better. Who would've thunk it?


	2. Chapter 2

Review response time!

BangkeBeurit: All I'm going to say is that he's definitely going to meet everyone, and I think you're going to like what happens when he meets Shirogane.

Eggmeister: Thanks! I decided to actually put some time into this one, the other stories I've done were actually bad enough that I deleted them. …Twice. In any case, all I'm going to say about Nanami and joining the investigation team is: Maybe. I've already got the outline for the story out there, so I'm not gonna spoil it at the moment. :B

A/N: Just an fyi, all chapters will be done in past tense from now on. There isn't any secret story element I'm trying to hide, it just got really annoying last chapter making sure I was in the right tense all the time.

After I got rid of my suit and put on some decent clothes, I stepped out the door and started plodding my way towards a direction I felt the bar was in. Thing is, whenever I actually try to find something, I'll spend a good three hours wandering around. If I'm just wandering around however, I'll find it within a few minutes. I chalk it up to my brain being a douche. After about twenty minutes, I pass by a building with some quiet music playing inside, and a bar! Wonderful. I've never been much of a drinker, but in my rather small amount of experience, there's almost no better place to make friends. Or enemies, now that I think of it, but that shouldn't be a problem. I open the door, strolling on in, trying to seem as non-city as possible. Of course, that didn't exactly work.

"Hey, it's the city guy!" Someone immediately shouted, motioning for me to sit next to him on the bar. I shrugged, chuckling a bit, deciding to just go sit by him. Couldn't hurt. After he bought me a drink, we got to talking a bit. "So, what city did ya come from, then?" He asks, looking pretty wasted. Seems like a pretty good guy, but… He's wearing a detective-ish coat. Is he a detective? Wait, that's not the important question. Is he a detective getting drunk? Oh, this oughta be fun.

I pretend to think for a second. "Well, I think it was somewhere in Russia." That joke got a nice blank stare. Wonderful. "Er, Tokyo." I added, trying not to look stupid.

"Oh, I see! Y' go to some fancy shmancy university, then?" He asks, slurring his words. Yeah, definitely drunk.

"Well, I suppose. I managed to get my way through Tokyo University…" I trailed off, trying not to seem like a snob. This whole rural town thing is pretty hard. Wow, double entendre. Wait, does that count as o- Right, can't let the ADHD take hold here, back to conversation!

"Oh yeah? Pfft, I never needed no "university", I got where I'm at on my own two feet!" He declares, looking like he's about to fall right off the stool. Suddenly, some skinny little guy in a suit comes running up, catching the drunk before he falls.

The skinny guy sighs, putting the drunk back on the chair. "Sir, you really, really can't do this… You should probably be at home…" This gets a quick response from the drunk, who glares at Skinny before stating only three words, rather calmly considering what he was like earlier.

"Shut up, Adachi." The drunk sighs, actually looking far more sober than before. Wait, "Sir"? Either this Adachi guy is a waiter, or a bouncer, or he's the drunk's underling. I look Adachi over. …Definitely not a bouncer. I doubt he could keep a bunch of bunnies from beating the hell out of each other. Waiter, possibly, but he doesn't seem to be doing any waiterish stuff. I'll go ahead and just assume I'm right about this guy being some kind of detective. I love being right.

"So, you're a police officer or something?" I ask, taking a small sip of my beer, looking at his face out of the corner of my eye. He winces a bit for some reason before responding.

"Yeah, yeah. Surprised you haven't heard of me, I'm pretty popular around these parts. Ryotaro Dojima, at your service, mister Nanami." I quirk an eyebrow at him. Well, I suppose that this town is pretty rumor-frenzied if they even know my name… Wait a second, isn't that Seta's guardian? I nod, finally getting it.

"Ah, so you're Seta's guardian, then?" I ask, taking another sip. He nods, smiling a bit.

"Yeah, for the next year or so. Seems to be a pretty quiet kid, does everything I ask him to, hell he's even babysitting my daughter right now, and it's only his first day here." He chuckles. "Yep, a pretty good guy."

…This isn't exactly what I saw on my end. He seemed to be a decent enough kid, but definitely not all that quiet or obedient. Looks like I was right when I diagnosed him as the manipulative type. Must be playing everyone he knows like a damned fiddle. Oh well, it'd be a good idea not to piss off a police officer by saying that his charge is outsmarting him.

"Yeah, he seems like an all around decent guy. Met him today for that appointment, he seemed to be settling into the town life nicely. He was even polite enough to ask me how I was holding up too." I'm not going to mention the train, I don't want to be associated with tha-

"Oh yeah, he told me about that. He also said that he saw you on that train yesterday. The one that crashed?" He asks, squinting at me as Adachi takes a seat to the left of him. Oh, great, and now I look suspicious.

"Y-yeah, I've kinda been trying to block it out. I was… right next to the front car when it hit." I shudder a bit, taking another sip of the beer. It's really decent beer, actually. I figured the city would have all the best stuff, but I guess what they say about the country area is true. Some day I'm going to have to come up with a less archaic word for that.

"…I see. I'm sorry about that. I think I saw you leaving the train too, now that I think of it. Heard you helped out an old woman that was stuck in the back. Thanks to you, she's still alive. Critical condition, but alive." I smile despite myself, laughing.

"R-really! That's wonderful news!" I exclaim, getting myself looks from around the bar. I look around sheepishly, wincing. "Er, sorry about that." Dojima laughs, obviously getting a kick out of my reaction.

"Yep, with luck she'll be just fine. She was awake for a bit, asked me to send you her regards." He sighs, rubbing his temple for a bit. "We still have no damned clue what caused the accident, though. When we examined the cars, everything was completely in working order. Well, aside from the one that got crushed, we're still having people look through that, but it just doesn't make any damned sense!" He shouts, slamming his fist against the bar. And suddenly we have more people looking at us. We must be quite the sight. Sighing, I turn back to Dojima.

"Well, I can't think of any reason anyone would actually cause the accident. I mean, if they wanted to make a statement, crashing a train into a rural town wouldn't make that much of an impact, in comparison with a big city. And if they were just angry at the world, I'm sure they would try for something bigger, even if they were psychotic enough to do that. My guess is, if someone -did- cause it, they'd have to be trying to take down a certain person on that train." I frown, thinking deeply while Dojima just stares at me blankly.

"D-did you come up with all that right on the spot?" He asks, looking surprised. …I guess I did, at that. Whenever I get to really thinking about something, possibilities just open up to me. I guess I'm kinda the Ideas guy.

"Well, yeah. It's probably all wrong, but I find that speculating is always helpful." I turn to him as he raises his eyebrows, whistling a bit. He grins, taking a gulp of his beer before speaking again.

"Hmmm… You're a pretty interesting fellow, mister Nanami. What would you say if I had a little part-time job offer for you, eh?" He laughs, but has a tinge of seriousness about him.

"W-what kind of offer?" I ask, knowing full well what it might be, but I might as well go along with him for now.

"Well y'see, you're that psychologist right? Well, maybe I can go ahead and get ya on the team. Y'know, for a psychological analyst. I was meaning to ask ya later, but since this whole train thing, and you being the only psychologst close enough to not cost anything to bring in…" He trails off, looking at me over his bottle. Well, he makes a good point, it would be a decent enough idea, and I would probably be able to help a lot.

"…I'll think about it. It -would- be part time, right? And I would still be able to have all of my appointments? And how much would I be getting paid?" Rapid fire questions are sometimes the best way to get all the answers you have. Or it just confuses the hell out of the person you're asking. Either way, it's pretty decent fun.

"Well, it would definitely be part time, you'd almost definitely be able to keep your appointments, but I don't know how much you would be getting paid, the chief hasn't put down a specific amount yet." What? The chief is actually behind this? I thought this Dojima guy was just drunk! …Well, I better answer, and I think I know what I'll say. Only one answer, really. A job full of excitement, analyzing things, helping out the community… there's no better way of getting close to the community than assisting police, right? Yeah, only one good choice.

"Well, I'm in then." I nod, grinning as I take yet another si- oh, it's gone. When did that happen? Well, might as well get another one… Dojima claps me on the back, laughing as I do.

"Good to be working with you then, Nanami!" He declares. I nod, grinning, and then the night slips away in a haze of beer and booze.

I wake up the next morning in a house I don't know. Yawning, I decide to roll over only to fall off a couch, right onto a table. The table then decided to break. What a prick. I stare up at the ceiling for a few seconds before turning my head to the left. Hell of a headache, not thinking very clearly. Oh, hey, there's a kid standing there. …Why is there a kid standing there? Little girl, by the looks of it. Oh, she's running up some… stairs, yeah, that's it. Stairs. I get up gingerly, trying to avoid the shattered bits of the table. Wait, shattered? Oh well, it'll fix itself I'm sure. I try walking. It doesn't work. I wonder why I even bothered. I slowly lay myself back on the floor, feeling my head touch something hard and cold. …That is a floor. Okay, I'm starting to get it. According to my head, it's stone. Or marble. Or maybe wood. One of them. Funny thing is, my body is on something fuzzy. Carpet. Ah, okay. Now I just need to figure out why there was a little girl there. Oh, there she is. And now she's with an bigger kid. The kid looks angry. …Wait, wha-

_**SLAM**_

Guah. What. Looking up at the kid, I see he has a… golf clu- OH JESUS

_**SLAM**_

Okay, gotta clear this up somehow. Umm… "Oi, kid stop-"

_**SLAM**_

Okay, fuck this. Kid is going the fuck down. I get up suddenly, grabbing the club as it comes down again, yanking it out of his grip, and I throw it at a wall. Then I grab him by the head and throw him. That'll teach that cheeky little shi-

Oh, it's Seta. …Oh crap. Wait, why is it Seta? …This isn't my house. Oh god. What did I do last night? I turn, getting a glance at the room before Seta manages to come back up and tackle me to the ground. Wonderful. I slam against the kitchen counter, shattering it. I AM GOING TO HAVE THIS LITTLE SHIT. He tries to knee me in the balls, but I just go ahead and grab his legs, throwing him off me before kicking him in the stomach. Since he looks pretty much down for the count, I begin to survey the room once again. Okay, looks like Dojima in the corner, sleeping against the wall, and there's Adachi by the TV, sleeping in front of it, and there's…

Oh, it's Dojima's daughter. And she is crying. And this is bad. I look back down at Seta. Oh, so he thought I was breaking in. So he was trying to protect Dojima's kid. And I just knocked him out cold and probably injured him. And I'm somehow fairly sure that Dojima's kid isn't exactly going to tell a neutral depiction of events. …I don't think I've ever been this screwed in my life. I kneel down next to Seta.

"…Um, Seta, you alright?" I look at him. Nope, he's completely out. I turn to Dojima's daughter, I think her name was Nanako?

"Er, Nanako is it? Yeah, this totally isn't what it looks like. …Well, it is, but there's a different reason for it. Um… Yeah. So… you should totally not tell Dojima about this." I shrug, then rub the back of my neck. Yeah, she's not exactly going for it. In fact, she just started crying, and… and she just ran to Dojima. And is shaking him. And his eyes just opened, and he just saw me standing over his beaten and unconscious… nephew? Relation? Cousin? Well, in any case, he's starting to sober up. And now he's getting mad. What would be more incriminating, running right now, or actually saying what happened? …Let's go with explaining this in a very rational fashio- Oh god, he's running to me and-

I woke up in a cell a few hours later, thoroughly confused once again. You see, there's something about getting beaten in the head with a golf club and then getting punched yet again that can really mess a man's perception of where he's actually supposed to be. I get to my feet groggily, trying to push back the temptation to go back to sleep and have a nap. I see that there's a guy sitting in a chair across from me. Oh, it's Dojima.

"Hey, Dojima." …I think I'm missing something here, he doesn't look very happy. In fact, he looks pretty much anti-happy. Oh, anti-happy means mad. Duh. I'm never getting drunk again.

"Shut the hell up, Nanami." He spits. Oh, I fucked up. I fucked up hard. I frown, quirking an eyebrow at him.

"…What happened? All I can remember is a golf club, and… well, that's about it. Something about little shits too, but it's all kind of a blur of pain." I wince, recalling the brief moments I can.

"Nanami, what you did was you beat my nephew into submission and knocked him out, you destroyed a good bit of my house, and you frightened my daughter half to death. You also made me get up in the middle of a hangover!" He shouts. Wow, did I really do that? Wait, his nephew is Seta right? …I'm not making a grand first impression. Yeah, this is actually pretty much terrible. "Do you have anything to say for yourself, Nanami?" He shouts again. Yeah, somehow I don't think we're gonna be great friends. I wonder if that job offer still stands… I'll ask about that later, not the time.

"Um… Well, I don't remember what I did and I'm sorry?" I mumble weakly. This is why I don't get drunk. Well, usually. Right, time to stop rambling in my head, this is serious business.

"…Are you playing games with me, Nanami?" He asks, a deadly undertone in his voice. Okay, gotta defuse this situation, this is very, very, very, ver- Oh, he just got up and punched me in the face. This is why I shouldn't ramble.

I clutch my face, grunting a bit. "Oi, stop with that. I was drunk, remember? All I goddamn remember is waking up, and then seeing some kid start bashing me with a goddamned golf club. I guess I took him out or whatever. That's all I really remember, dammit!"

He grunts, rubbing his knuckles. He hit me pretty damn hard, gonna have a bruise there for weeks, which won't really help with the suit. Not to mention the possibility that I won't even have clients anymore. That's also going to be a problem. Wonder if we can keep this quiet? No, impossible, it's a small town, stuff like this always gets around, especially if it's about a brand new city boy psychologist that looks really rich because he got a… Uhoh, runon sentence. Can't have that in my head. Okay, so I'm going to have to fix this.

"Alright, fine. It makes sense, I suppose. You're paying for all damages. The only reason you're getting off is because Souji himself said that he didn't really know what was going on. You're going to have to cough up the money for the hospital fees, and to replace the kitchen counter and the table. I expect to be paid back soon." I groan. That's gonna take all the money I saved up! Eh… well, I suppose it's better than what it could've been…

"Hey, you should be glad I'm letting you off so damn easy. You could've done time for this." He sighs, looking about as unhappy with the situation as I am. "Look, I know you're a good guy, but if you're going to do this every time you get drunk, we're not going drinking anymore." I nod. No way to disagree on that, I'm never getting drunk in this town again.

"Alright, I got it. I was just groaning at the overall situation, I'm more than happy with the way this turned out. Well, minus the whole… Right, I'll just stop digging my hole right there. How much will it be?" Look at me, learning my social skills. Yay me.

"It'll be about 70,000 yen for all of it together." Well, that's not all that bad. I should definitely say sorry to Seta and Nanako, too. I can only imagine what waking up to that must be like. "Oh, and you'll also need to do Seta's homework for a week." Wait, what? I stare blankly at Dojima. "Don't give me that look, he insisted on it. He can be quite the bargainer, and it's either you do his homework for a week, or you can get a nice long look at this cell."

…It's not so much that Souji would make me do that, it's more that Dojima's allowing it. Isn't he supposed to, hell I dunno, make sure Souji does all his work? And when did I start thinking of him as Souji? Stupid personal relationships, damn things keep me from working so well. God, I'm rambling again, wonderful. Back on topic!

"Well, alright then, I suppose." I sigh again. He's got you eating out of his hand, Dojima. I snap my fingers. "Ah, is that job offer still open even though this happened?" Oh, I guess it's his turn to sigh. He rubs his temples before raising his head to face me again.

"Yeah, sure. Just don't let anything like this happen again, understood? I can't have people that I recommend for the job go around beating up children. Bad for the reputation, obviously. I want you to report in tomorrow, and we'll get you working on something. Now come on, let's get you out of the cell." He gets up, helping me to my feet. Gah, I'm bruised up. Gonna be a hellish walk home, that's for sure.

"Thanks, Dojima. By the way, tell them both I'm sorry. Didn't mean to scare your little girl like that, and I didn't mean to… well, beat the crap out of Souji. This is why I try not to drink." I chuckle a bit, glancing at Dojima's face.

"Alright then, from now on if I hear about you drinking, I'll have you report to the chief!" He laughs, his dark demeanor apparently abated. Thank god, I really don't want this man as an enemy. We make it out of the station, most of the cops not even giving me a second glance as I pass through. Well, that's good. I give Dojima directions, and he gets me back to my house/office pretty quickly. Thanking him, I limp out of the car and into the building.

I sigh, looking over my appointment list. Let's see, Kanji Tatsumi, eh? Oh, this should be interesting. Looks like he's being forced to come by the school, and he'll be expelled if he doesn't show. Lucky for me, he's supposed to show up in ten minutes. Joy. I yawn again, forcing my way into the bedroom and begin brewing up some tea. As it finishes, I bring it into the office just as the chimes ring. Either he decided to come, or Souji's coming for a rematch. I set the tea down on the visitor's side of the desk, settling into my seat as I call for him to come in.

Okay, I'm somewhat stunned. There are very few kids I've seen that can actually manage to pull off the "don't fuck with me look", but this kid has perfected it to an artform. Hell, I'm almost intimidated! As he walks in, he nods towards me, sitting in his seat, quirking an eyebrow at the tea.

"What the hell is this?" He asks, gesturing towards the tea. Oh, and apparently he doesn't like tea. Time to salvage the situation!

"Well, it's tea. For first time guests." I mutter, trying to play the meek type. He snorts, looking distinctly snobby, but actually takes the tea and sips it. His eyes widen a bit.

"H-hey, that's not that bad! …E-er, not that I like tea. It's just less shitty." Wait, what? He's a tough guy that likes tea? …This kid is becoming more and more interesting by the moment! He looks a bit happy now, actually. Well, for someone who's being forced to see a psychologist. I decide to start off with the basic things first.

"So then, Tatsumi, what brings you here?" False ignorance: The single best way to get someone to open up at the beginning. It almost always leads to anger, but anger is only one of the many pathways to someone's head.

"The damn school seems to think I'm messed up in the head! Dumbasses think that just 'cause I get angry, that I have problems. DO I LOOK LIKE I GOT PROBLEMS TO YOU?" He shouts, almost blowing my ears out. Woah.

"Well, can't exactly say yet, actually. You look like a pretty tough guy, though, one of the few I've seen that can actually pull it off without looking like an idiot. You practice that or something?" The look on his face. It is priceless.

"W-what?" He leans backwards, his eyes widening a bit. I guess he's used to people freaking out. To be honest, I was fucking terrified, but the smart thing to do in situations like this is to look completely calm. Calmness is infectious. "The hell are you talking about?" Okay, maybe not. Now he just looks a bit panicky.

"Oh, nothing. Want some more tea?" He polished his off about a minute in. He loves the stuff, I guess.

"E-er, I don't need anymore of this damn tea! What, do you think I'm gay or something?" Okay, what? Since when the hell was tea gay? Oh, maybe he's talking about the cups. That little shit is insulting my mom's finest tea cups!

"What, you giving me shit about my teacups, kid?" I yell. I'm not takin' any more of this shit from kids today, I already got beat up by Souji, I'm not gonna let my dead mom's china get dissed. Woah, his reaction is actually more severe than I thought. He shifted in his seat, looking kinda meek all of a sudden. What the hell is up with this kid?

"O-oh, I thought… Er, nothing! I thought you thought I was… y'know! Shut up!" And now he's back to righteous anger. What the hell. Wait, does he mean he thought I thought he was gay? Why the hell would I think that? …Ooooh. I think I get it. Well, I'll touch on that later, I don't want to get into subjects like that right away, probably just scare him off.

"Eh, whatever." I shrug. "Anyway, so would you consider yourself an angry person?" I ask, pulling out a note sheet. Might as well make him a bit nervous.

"Hey, why the hell are you taking notes on me, huh?" Okay, maybe he's not nervous. I sigh, showing him the sheet. It has nothing on it but his name. He decides to shout again. Hell, the neighbors are probably calling the damned cops by now. "O-oh. Well, don't take any damn notes, or I'll make you wish you didn't!" Alright, someone in this room is incredibly insecure, and it sure as hell ain't me. Or the clock. I sigh again, putting the note sheet away and leaning forward, tenting my hands.

"Kanji. Is it alright if I call you that?" I ask, keeping a neutral face with the tenting. Makes me look either imposing, or just like a snob. I'm willing to take the risk to perform a Gendo in every day life.

"I don't give a damn." He certainly seems to be mellowing down, which is definitely good. Looking at the clock, it seems that we're about halfway through the session. Not bad, I'm making much more progress than with the last three.

"Well then Kanji, do you want some more tea or not? And you better not knock the damn tea cups again, or I'll knock you." He glares at me, but nods.

"Fine, whatever. Just make it fast, dammit!" Hmm, maybe I should move the tea maker into the office, it'd be easier to get to.

"Be right back, then." I pick up the china, filling another two cups with tea. I set it down in front of him, and he immediately starts greedily sipping at it. Seriously, it's not a soda. You're supposed to savor it. Well, whatever, at least I'm not guzzling it down. We stare at each other for about a minute, before Kanji manages to mumble something out.

"T-the cups are actually, uh, kinda nice. I guess. Well, they ain't bad." He stutters. I guess he's not used to just talking to someone. Well, I think I'll change that eventually, but for now I'm just gonna take it one step at a time.

"Thanks, they were my mom's, but she gave them to be just before she passed. From what she said, apparently they're heirlooms. I doubt she planned for me to actually put tea in them, but in my point of view, nothing should just sit there unused, just to look pretty. Except for wallpaper, not much you can do with that." Wackiness: Another way to make someone lower their guard. I'm so good.

"Oh yeah? Well uh, that's good I guess." Yeah, he seems pretty taken aback. Mission accomplished! Chalk up another win for Tsukihiro! As I'm giving myself a metaphorical pat on the back, the alarm rings. I grin at Kanji.

"Well, looks like that's all the time we have for this week. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I have, you're a pretty interesting guy." For some reason, as I said this, he began to blush furiously, and stammered a goodbye for storming out of the office. …What the hell? Shrugging, I pick up all the silverware and put it in the kitchen. Better wash it later, but for now I should get the money I need to pay back Dojima, and I need to do Seta's goddamn homework. This is gonna be a gigantic pain in the ass, I barely remember anything from those days. Google's going to get used far more than usual tonight, that's for sure.

I pull my jacket on, making my way out the door towards the bank. It's twilight again, the end of my third day in Inaba. Gotta say, it's already been a lot more eventful here than at the city, despite what it seems. Then again, maybe that's just because I got into a major fight and got really, really drunk. Who's to say? In any case, it's turning out far better than it did back in the capital. Loving the small town atmosphere, and hey, it's the bank! Thinking while walking is incredibly helpful for this kinda thing. I stroll into the place, and ask to make a withdrawal of seventy thousand. The teller's eyes widened, but she put it through anyway. She asked me if I was being forced to withdraw it, which got her a blank stare that made her go ahead and give it to me. Nothing like a blank stare to make someone feel stupid. I really need to stop using these powers for senseless dickery. Oh, that's a new word.

As I start walking towards where I think Dojima's house is, I see a huge group of people out of the corner of my eye. I stop for a moment, following their gaze…

Oh my god. What the fuck is this? There's a body, on the antenna… I whip around, feeling sick. What the… what the fuck? I do some dream checks, look at my hand, read a nearby billboard… none of it works. That only means one thing. As I slowly turn back around, I realize that this isn't just a nightmare, this is the actual reality. I move towards the crowd, as if I was in a trance. What the hell could make someone do this? As I enter the surrounding area, I get tapped on the shoulder. I whip around, seeing Dojima.

"Good thing you showed up, Nanami. What do you make of this?" I stare up at the antenna, barely suppressing the urge to run off and puke. Apparently Adachi wasn't so lucky. I shudder.

"Honestly Dojima, I have no clue what could possess someone to do something like this… this is just disgusting." I shudder again, tearing my gaze away from the body. "Hell… Do things like this happen often? First the train, and now this…" I trail off, glancing towards Dojima.

"Nah, this doesn't happen, usually. I don't know what it is, but we have to put a stop to this -right now-." Dojima seems about as disturbed as me. When I signed on to this, I didn't think I'd have to deal with a goddamned serial killer…

I nod at Dojima. "We can't let things like this happen. Do we have any idea who could have done this? I mean, someone moving a body up there, it'd be incredibly visible…" As I speak, Dojima shakes his head.

"We have nothing. Nobody around here saw anyone, especially not with a body. If I didn't know better, I'd say it got up there itself…" He shudders at the thought, while I can barely stifle a laugh. He's thinking of the super terrifying walking dead, I'm thinking of Zombieland. Okay, back on subject.

"…Damn. Do we have any pictures of this? There might be some kind of twisted symbolism to it." I ask, keeping my gaze firmly centered on Dojima.

"Nanami, it's right there. Why not just look at that?" He gestures towards the body.

"Truth be told, I'm pretty squeamish when it comes to things like this. It's much easier to handle when it's just a picture." I shudder, forcing the image of the body from my mind. Dojima nods, fairly understanding.

"Alright, I'll have one of the boys get some photos for you." I nod, and catch a glimpse of some students loitering around the crime scene. I point them out to Dojima, and as we approach I notice one of them is Amagi. Now what would she be doing here?

"Hey, kids, get out of here. This isn't something for you to see." Dojima lays down the law, and the pair look pretty freaked out already. They nod, leaving quickly. I guess this -would- hold some bizarre fascination towards kids, but… Hell, I don't know. I just need to get out of here. I turn to Dojima.

"Can I head on out of here? Nothing I can do here right now, and I just… I really don't want to see this right now." Dojima nods, and I remember the money. "Ah, by the way, here's the payment." I take the money out, putting it into his hand. His eyes widen.

"Y-you didn't just have this on hand, did you?" He stutters. Well, obviously I didn't I just brought it out of the bank.

"Of course not. But that covers it, right?" Dojima nods, and I bow to him, taking my leave.

As I walk back home, my mind continues to wander back to that horrific scene. I just can't lock it out of my head. The train was easy, it wasn't that… graphic, if you didn't look. But that body… it was so much more -personal-, and therefore much more twisted in it's creation. What kind of grudge do you have to have to do that to someone… Murder is one thing, it can happen in the blink of an eye, a sudden outburst of hate. Although it's still terrible, murder is almost kinder than what happened there. Putting a body on an antenna like that takes determination, it takes planning… someone -wanted- to do this, and that's the worst part. It didn't just happen as part of some unfortunate misunderstanding, it happened because someone truly wanted this, -worked- for it even. It's utterly wrong on so, so many levels. I end up at the house, trudging my way up the stairs and hanging the jacket on the hook.

I should just sleep… hopefully the nightmares don't come again.


End file.
